TORONTO, May 15, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC) is taking steps to modernize its reimbursement program and systems in the event of a member institution failure with the ultimate goal of providing Canadians with access to their protected savings on the day the failure of a member institution is announced. CDIC President and CEO Peter Routledge, discussed this plan during a panel discussion at the corporation’s annual public meeting.

Across Canada, more than 98 per cent of personal deposits are protected by CDIC.

Currently, it can take several days to weeks – depending on the type of deposit and the quality of a member institution’s data – to reimburse funds in the event a failed CDIC member institution is closed by authorities.

Together with CDIC subject matter experts, Mr. Routledge discussed the Corporation’s five-year plan to modernize its reimbursement program and systems with an aspiration of reimbursing depositors on the day of failure (T+0). These aspirations require CDIC’s member institutions, and related financial professionals, to work with CDIC to enable the quick and accurate payment to depositors in the unlikely event they fail. These efforts will ensure CDIC keeps pace with a changing banking landscape and Canadians can continue to save and bank with confidence.

“At CDIC, our role is to be ready for a failure tomorrow. Or next week. Or next year,” said Mr. Routledge. “And that means working closely with our members and other stakeholders to strengthen our mutual readiness for resolution in the event of a failure.”

The panel discussion was held in conjunction with , Payments Canada’s annual industry conference, in Toronto, where Mr. Routledge and the rest of the panel also took questions from the audience.

CDIC is a federal Crown corporation established in 1967 to protect the savings of Canadians, and we contribute to financial stability by safeguarding over $792 billion in deposits at more than 80 member institutions. As resolution authority, we are responsible for handling the failure of any of our members, from the smallest to the largest. Our members include banks, federally regulated credit unions as well as loan and trust companies and associations governed by the that take deposits. We are funded by premiums paid by member institutions and do not receive public funds to operate. We have resolved 43 member failures affecting some two million Canadians. No one has lost a dollar of deposits under CDIC protection.